HOOPS: Penn State women rout Wisconsin

STATE COLLEGE -- Nikki Greene scored a season-high 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead No. 8 Penn State to an 84-40 rout of Wisconsin on Thursday night.

Alex Bentley added 14 points, Maggie Lucas had 11 and Ariel Edwards 10 for the Nittany Lions (14-2, 4-0 Big Ten), who won their eighth straight game overall and third in a row by at least 20 points. It was Penn State's first conference victory of 40 or more points since the 2000-01 season.

Morgan Paige scored 14 points and Jacki Gulczynski had 10 for Wisconsin (8-10, 0-5), which lost its sixth consecutive game.

Penn State was able to make the most of a size advantage under the basket, scoring 52 points in the paint compared to 10 by the Badgers.

The Nittany Lions also had a distinct depth advantage. Wisconsin began the season with 14 players but is down to nine after senior Taylor Wurtz (back) and sophomore AnnMarie Brown (knee) underwent the team's most recent season-ending surgeries.

Wisconsin coach Bobbie Kelsey also noted that starting center Cassie Rochel, who had four points and six rebounds, was battling a stomach illness.

Penn State committed a turnover on its opening possession but still managed to score the game's first 11 points, including six by Bentley, who finished the first half with 11.

The Badgers broke their early scoreless streak on Nicole Bauman's 3-pointer 4:29 into the game, but they didn't reach double figures until 5:50 remained in the half.